MLB
MLB Teams & Players Most Impacted by Opening Day’s Delay
Everyone in the MLB has been affected by the Opening Day Delay, but who does it impact the most?
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Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, Major League Baseball has delayed the beginning of the season. While we all await the beginning of the 2020 season, let’s take a look at those teams and players most impacted by the season’s suspension, which will last until at least Memorial Day in late May. The fallout of these events will benefit some MLB teams/players, while others are dealing with more harsh and unfortunate circumstances.
First, here’s some facts to know about MLB and the season’s suspension:
Remember when the talk of the town was the Astros’ cheating scandal and how they would react to the media and fans during the regular season? Man, how times have changed in a matter of weeks. This doesn’t mean that the Astros will get discharged of the fans anger, but it will certainly make their situation easier to navigate.
It is still unclear if when the season begins, there will be fans in attendance or whether games will be played in front of an empty crowd. But of course, if the latter were to happen, the Astros will catch a break. If the Spring Training booing that went on was any indication of how fans were going to be during the season, it was going to be the toughest year a team has faced, psychologically, probably ever.
Regarding injuries, the Astros have announced that Justin Verlander is set to be sidelined six to eight weeks after undergoing groin surgery. That should be around a week or two before Memorial Day, which is close to the best-case scenario the league gave regarding the start of the 2020 season. The 2019 AL Cy Young winner pitched just 4.2 innings this past spring training. With this suspension, the ‘Stros might be able to start the season with their best pitcher able to take the bump.
Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, and James Paxton were all expected to miss the beginning of the season. That’s a pretty long list, and thanks to the delay of the regular season, might now get cut in half. Hicks will not be affected by any delay of play after having Tommy John surgery last winter. Hicks’ situation is similar to Didi Gregorius‘, who underwent the same surgery. Gregorius had the surgery in October 2018 and returned to the lineup in the summer of 2019.
On the contrary, Stanton was reportedly going to be ready a few series into the season after suffering a grade-one calf strain. Also, Paxton wasn’t scheduled to be ready until late-May/early-June after having a cyst removed from his back. They could now both be ready to lace them up by the new Opening Day.
Judge, who is recovering from a stress fracture in his rib, can benefit greatly from the time off. Judge’s injury needs time to allow the bone to heal itself. Healing estimates range from three to six months. The Yankees were hopeful that Judge could avoid surgery, which would keep him out for almost the whole season.
From what we saw this spring training, the Yankees were headed down the same path they took last year— relying on depth with an absurd amount of stars injured. This delay gives the Yankees a fresh break to get healthy before the season, and hopefully stay that way this time.
Actual lunch on the road at MiLB Spring Training. One slice of deli meat and cheese, an apple, a Gogurt, and a Nature Valley bar. When we tried to make salads at our home complex before getting on the bus, we were told it was not allowed because lunch was already provided. pic.twitter.com/KEfTjro3SK
— Ty Kelly (@tykelly11) February 11, 2020
Minor league salaries have been a huge debate within the baseball community for the last few years. MiLB players get paid only during the regular season, which usually lasts five months at the triple-A level. They do not get paid during the offseason or Spring Training. This Opening Day delay has put their financial situation in question.
Franchises’ treatment of minor leaguers has been criticized a lot in past years. From salary to food, players have voiced their frustrations with the current system. For example, this past February, former New York Mets infielder Ty Kelly showed the road trip meals for players in MiLB Spring Training (above).
MLB has announced that they will pay a stipend to minor leaguers through April 8 ($57.14/day), which is below the minimum wage. The current minimum salaries in the minor leagues range from $290/week in rookie ball to $500/week in triple-A.
It was already announced that MiLB salaries are going to be raised starting in 2021. These current events have been even more of a wake-up call to the public regarding the situations these players are in. Fans have started fundraising pages in order to help players during times of crisis.
It is important to note that minor leaguers are not protected by a players’ union, and MLB has announced that they will look for additional ways to help MiLB players during the pandemic.
The Angels have finally built a great offense around Mike Trout with the addition of Anthony Rendon. However, their lack of pitching depth still leaves rooms for big question marks regarding their chances of reaching the postseason. Their most important and talented pitcher is two-way star Shohei Ohtani. The Japanese international superstar was reportedly going to be returning to the mound around mid-May after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2018.
In 2018, Ohtani won the AL Rookie of the Year by pitching to a 3.31 ERA in 51.2 IP and striking out 63 on the way in addition to hitting .285/.361/.564 in 367 PA. It is safe to assume that Ohtani could be ready as a pitcher for the start of the 2020 season and could even end up being the eventual Opening Day starter for the Angels.
*MLB’s new “two-way-player” rule, which goes into effect this season, states that for a player to become “two-way”, the team must designate him as a pitcher (teams have a maximum of 14 pitchers). That player must then pitch 20 innings and play 20 games as a position player. After that, the team can designate that player as two-way, and allows for another pitcher to get called up. So, basically, the team will end up with 15 pitchers.*
It has been a rough start to 2020 for Red Sox nation. They traded Mookie Betts during the offseason, they had to fire manager Alex Cora amid the Astros’ penalties, and now they’re awaiting their own punishment regarding the cheating that went on during the 2018 season, and they have announced that lefty ace Chris Sale needs Tommy John surgery.
However, there are some positives for the Sox thanks to the pushing back of Opening Day. Red Sox interim manger, Ron Roenicke, has respectable managerial experience. Roenicke managed the Milwaukee Brewers from 2010 to 2015, which is exactly what a team would want in times like these. As a leader that has that experience and has been with Boston since 2017, he can provide some level of continuity. Of course, it won’t be the same as Alex Cora and Mookie Betts entrenched as leaders of this team. He has also been with the Red Sox since 2017, so he understands the Boston fans and media.
If they are proven to have cheated and are forced deal with sanctions in 2020 just like the Astros, they can also benefit from the cheating scandal not being the main focus of the MLB universe this year.
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